State Employment Law Articles

An amendment to the Illinois Code of Civil Procedure provides that for all actions brought to recover damages for personal injury or wrongful death, prejudgment interest of six percent will begin to accrue on the date the action is filed.

Last Friday, Cal-OSHA published its revised, proposed COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standards (“ETS”). These rules and regulations were promulgated primarily to take into account the impact of vaccinations in our state. They provide incentives for employers with large percentages of fully-vaccinated

On May 21, 2021, Oregon Governor Kate Brown signed Senate Bill (SB) 169, making substantial changes to the statute that limits noncompetition agreements with Oregon employees, Oregon Revised Statutes (ORS) 653.295. The changes apply to any employee noncompetition agreement entered into on or after t

The Virginia Overtime Wage Act (VOWA), Va. Code § 40.1-29.2, becomes effective July 1, 2021, and will significantly alter employers’ wage and hour obligations in Virginia. At first glance, the VOWA appears to track federal law under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Upon closer examination, howev

On May 28, 2021, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker signed legislation providing every full-time employee up to 40 hours (pro-rated for part-time employees) of job-protected, emergency paid sick leave for certain COVID-19 reasons, including to obtain the COVID-19 vaccination or to recover from sym

On May 25, 2021, Governor Brian Kemp signed an Executive Order (Order) prohibiting any state agency, provider of state services, or state property from implementing a Vaccine Passport Program (VPP)1 or otherwise requiring an individual to provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination. The Order further stat

During the last legislative session, the Nevada Legislature made several efforts to increase the state minimum wage. One such effort was Assembly Joint Resolution No.

On May 24 and 25, 2021, New Jersey Governor Philip D. Murphy signed Executive Order (EO) 242 and EO 243, respectively, easing COVID-19-related workplace restrictions. While EO 242 had less impact on employers than many had hoped, the governor clarified and expanded his directives with EO 243, which

Oregon law on permitted covenants not to compete has been amended to void nonconforming agreements and limit such agreements to employees making at least $100,533, among other changes.

On May 17, 2021, Governor Kay Ivey signed Alabama’s new medical marijuana law, known as the Darren Wesley ‘Ato’ Hall Compassion Act, making Alabama the 37th state to legalize marijuana for medical purposes. The law identifies specific qualifying medical conditions, including but not limited to autis

Rescinding Mask Mandates, Masks in Schools, Prohibiting Vaccine Passports, Crowd Control, Curbside Sales of Beer and Wine, and More.

Montana Governor Greg Gianforte recently signed two bills designed to establish the framework for recreational cannabis and to begin to implement Constitution Initiative 118 (CI-118) and Initiative 190 (I-190), which were adopted by vote in the November 2020 election.

Pennsylvania’s Emergency Management Services Code allows a governor, upon declaring a disaster emergency, to issue orders responding to that emergency. The power to issue such orders ends either when the governor decides the emergency has passed or the legislature, by concurrent resolution, terminat

Effective May 24, 2021, The Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MIOSHA) revised its COVID-19 Emergency Rules . The change comes as more Michiganders have received vaccines and COVID-19 cases have decreased. Remote Work and Masking Practices

On May 24, 2021, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer announced important changes to the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (MIOSHA) emergency COVID-19 rules, “Emergency Rules for Coronavirus Disease 2019.” Governor Whitmer also announced that the draft permanent MIOSHA COVID-19

The Standards Board of California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) recently published proposed revisions to the COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS). The Standards Board held a meeting on May 20, but ultimately deferred voting on the proposed revisions in order to consi

On April 21, 2021, Virginia Governor Ralph Northam signed into law House Bill No. 2312 and Senate Bill No. 1406 , moving the date of recreational marijuana legalization in Virginia up to July 1, 2021. The legalization movement, which has increased in momentum in the Commonwealth since Democrats gain

On May 5, 2021, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the New York Health and Essential Rights Act (NY HERO Act) , which mandates extensive new workplace health and safety protections for all airborne infectious diseases. This action was quickly followed by the New York State Assembly’s May 10, 2021

Washington has adopted new laws that presume workers’ compensation coverage for “frontline employees,” creating reporting requirements, and provide additional protections for “high risk” workers designed to better prepare the state for the next pandemic. The new laws take effect immediately.

On March 30, 2021, Governor Ralph Northam signed into law the Virginia Overtime Wage Act (VOWA), creating new wage and hour requirements for Virginia employers. Set to take effect July 1, 2021, the VOWA also includes numerous employee protections. The VOWA amends the Virginia Code to authorize colle